I posted a recipe a little while ago for octopus in tomato sauce. That one was more of a complete meal, but here’s a simple simple recipe for preparing octopus more as a tapa dish or as an appetizer.
Ingredients
Octopus
Sea salt
Olive oil
Lemon wedges
Ground piri piri or cayenne
Tip: Try to not get octopus that’s too large. A smaller octopus will cook faster and will be more tender. I buy mine from Cowichan Bay Seafood in the Victoria Public Market.
Instructions
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. No need to salt the water. Once it’s rapidly boiling add the octopus. Once the water comes to a boil again turn the temp down to a simmer and simmer for about 30 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the octopus sit in the hot water for about 20 minutes and cover with a lid. At this point slice a piece off to check for tenderness. If it’s not tender enough let it sit in the hot water for longer.
Remove the octopus and slice into bite size pieces. You may also want to cut away some of the red coloured ‘skin’ as it can be a little tougher to chew. Add a little sea salt, cayenne pepper, a squirt of lemon juice and a drizzle of good quality olive oil.
